Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Introduction
Schools of Buddhism
Theravada Buddhism
Knowledge
The fundamental teachings were collected into their final form around the 3rd
century BCE, after a Buddhist council at Patna in India.
The teachings were written down in Sri Lanka during the 1st century CE. They
were written in Pali (a language like Sanskrit) and are known as the Pali canon.
It's called the Tipitaka - the three baskets. The three sections are:
These rules are followed by Buddhist monks and nuns, who recite the 227 rules
twice a month.
This contains the whole of Buddhist philosophy and ethics. It includes the
Dhammapada which contains the essence of Buddha's teaching.
The texts have remained unaltered since they were written down. Buddhist
monks in the Theravada tradition consider it important to learn sections of these
texts by heart.
Cave temples: unique feature in these caves was the use of a drip ledge
carved along the top edge of the rock ceiling which stopped rain water
running into the cave. With time doors, windows and walls of brick or
stone were added. The roof and walls were plastered white and finished
with decorative paintings
Dagobas or Stupas: probably the largest brick structures known to the premodern world. built to enshrine relics. admired today for its structural perfection and
stability. stupa was thereafter covered with a coating of lime plaster.
Thailand Architecture
Mahayana Buddhism
Zen Buddhism
Began in China, spread to Korea and Japan, and became very popular in
the West from the mid-20th century
Essence of Zen: attempting to understand the meaning of life directly,
without being misled by logical thought or language
History
Zen Buddhism was brought to China by the Indian monk Bodhidharma in
the 6th century CE.It was called Ch'an in China.
Zen's golden age began with the Sixth Patriarch, Hui-neng (638-713), and
ended with the persecution of Buddhism in China in the middle of the 9th
century CE. Most of those we think of today as the great Zen masters
came from this period. Zen Buddhism survived the persecution though it
was never the same again in China.
Zen spread to Korea in the 7th century CE and to Japan in the 12th
century CE. It was popularised in the West by the Japanese scholar
Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki (1870 - 1966); although it was found in the West
before that.
Tibetan Buddhism
a religion in exile, forced from its homeland when Tibet was conquered by
the Chinese
best known face of Tibetan Buddhism is the Dalai Lama
History
Buddhism became a major presence in Tibet towards the end of the
8th century CE. It was brought from India at the invitation of the
Tibetan king, Trisong Detsen, who invited two Buddhist masters to
Tibet and had important Buddhist texts translated into Tibetan.
First to come was Shantarakshita, abbot of Nalanda in India, who
built the first monastery in Tibet. He was followed by
Padmasambhava, who came to use his wisdom and power to
Tibetan Architecture
Chinese Architecture